This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Traditionally, a passive entry/passive start (PEPS) system, which is a vehicle system that includes a keyless entry system, allows anyone in possession of a key fob that has been previously paired with a vehicle's central PEPS electronic control unit (ECU) to access the vehicle by simply grabbing the door handle and to start the vehicle with a push of a button. In response to a button push, the central PEPS ECU authenticates the key fob to determine if the key fob is authorized to access the vehicle and uses the signal strength indicated by a plurality of vehicle antennas to estimate the location of the Key Fob. If the Key Fob can be authenticated and is located within an authorizing zone, the vehicle's function is made available to the user (i.e. doors are unlocked or vehicle is started).
However, traditional PEPS systems include physical vulnerabilities that may subject the PEPS systems to malicious attacks. As an example, a user may attack a PEPS system by connecting a device to the vehicle's on-board diagnostics (OBD-II) port. Using the device, the user may manipulate signals of and/or inject signals into a controller area network (CAN) and/or local interconnect network (LIN) of the vehicle, thereby providing the user the ability to activate/deactivate vehicle functions. As another example, the user may attack a PEPS system via a compact-disc (CD) player and pass-through devices of the vehicle. Specifically, the user may insert a CD into a CD player of a vehicle, and the CD may include instructions that discretely inject signals into the CAN and/or LIN of the vehicle while executing, for example, a windows media audio (WAN) or a moving picture experts group layer-3 audio (MP3) file.
Additionally, traditional PEPS systems include wireless vulnerabilities that may subject the PEPS systems to malicious attacks. As an example, a user may attack a PEPS system by passive eavesdropping, man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks, and identity tracking of various telemetric links of the PEPS system.